Monthly Archives: October 2016

If you’re keen enough, smart enough, on a mission enough – you might find them hiding between lines of sexual misconduct, email scandals, and personality flaws during this perverse and conflicting election season. You’ll catch a glimpse of them as the scurry from the darkness into the light, more often than not you’ll find them neglected or negated, swept under rugs or just simply brushed aside – what are they, you might ask? Well, they’re facts. They’re the real issues and real problems that you’re somehow not being bombarded with because the news is controlled by media companies so succinctly feeding the press stories – not truths – that it becomes hard to tell who the chicken and the egg are. But at least you can admit, to a point – they’re both clucking mad.

According to an infographic from 2011 that’s since gone viral, in just under twenty years – the media has gone from being owned by 50 different companies to just six by 2011: GE, News Corp, News-Corpiacom, Time Warner and CBS. Based on the recent merger between AT&T and Time Warner, you better believe that number is only going to get smaller over time – and that’s downright terrifying. One conglomerate to control them all could (unfortunately) make sense in a fascist dictatorship, or under communist rule – but we have either an oligarchy or plutocracy that masquerades around as a “democracy” – which makes it all the more terrifying how much “they” control the “news“. Because let’s face it, whether locally, nationally or globally – news continually slips through the cracks while the semblance of a political psycho-circus is always lurking just around the corner. More often than not, I find both media outlets, as well as my peers, are consumed with what I consider to be the wrong issues. Right now for me, that issue is the Dakota Access Pipeline.

For those with a terrible short-term memory, back in 2011 – there were ample protests against the cross-continent implementation of the Keystone Pipeline XL. An extension of the Keystone pipeline that would stretch from the oil fields in Alberta, Canada all the way down into Texas. The cliff notes version: Alberta’s TransCanada energy company wanted a pipeline to travel to refineries in Houston and Port Arthur, which would bring 830k barrels of oil through a day. Through much protest (that America heard very little about) the motion was passed in Canada. Their intention was to piggyback on the existing Keystone pipeline, which was given a green light by George Bush in 2008. The new XL pipeline would instead carry tar sands oil: a heavier, more corrosive and more carbon intensive oil than the conventional oil. Translation: less ecofriendly, more emissions, more pollution – and more of a mess to clean up.

The almost 1200 mile pipeline was set to disrupt wildlife while pushing out indigenous tribes that have lived in synchronicity with the land for eons. The pipeline was raising more questions than answers, increasing our carbon footprint and forcing climate change as we frack for crude oil instead of searching for more eco-conscious and sustainable solutions. The ideology behind the XL pipeline was so terrible that troves of tree huggers, nature lovers and generational leaders came out of the woodwork in protest – including most notably the president of the Sierra Club, who broke their 120 year stance on civil disobedience to drive their point home. Though a Republican Senate passed the Keystone Pipeline approval act, President Obama thankfully rejected the decision in 2015.

But that was Keystone XL, and this is the Dakota Access Pipeline. So, what’s different now? For starters, not much – and that, in my opinion, is the first problem. Since the industrial revolution, humans have continually trolled the land, stealing and pilaging what we can from it without giving much, if anything, in return. The DAPL proposes to take crude oil from currently untapped regions Bakken Oil Pipeline that are estimated to hold upwards of 7 billion barrels of oil. The problem with pipelines, as we’ve seen in the past, are the ways they can burst, break and wreak havoc on their surrounding environment, creating unlivable human conditions and decimate any semblance of animal life. As the pipeline is currently drawn, it would drive itself into the heart of the Sioux Indian Tribal Lands, disrupting the way of life of not just the native human population – but the continually dwindling animal population as well. And speaking of animal population, it feels like they’re listening – just watch this video of Bison travel down to Standing Rock to give their energy, and then remember how large packs of bison actually used to be. This is our doing, this is is our destrution, this is humanity’s Midas touch -and we pour salt in our own wounds on the daily.

It’s a shame that so many of us believe that the earth is theirs to inherit, it’s not ours, the same way it was never our grandparents, or their parents before them – this land belongs to my great granddaughters who I’ll never meet, and their great granddaughters and so forth. Our time here is a continual investment in the future, not a past debt owed to us that we can exploit over, and over again. According to the World Wildlife Foundation’s biennial Living Planet Report, in the last fifty years the marine life has been decimated by 36%, terrestrial populations have declined by 38% and freshwater popluations have shrunk an abhroent 81%. They project that in the next fifth years almost 2/3 of the wildlife in the world will go extinct for a various number of reasons, most of them manmade: climate change, pollution and the destruction of the animal’s natural habit; a hat trick of terror that humans have enacted onto the world that we simply can’t turn back the clock on – but we can stop ourselves from getting greedy with the planet and going overboard.

Ways to Help

Sign The Petition

Start small but think big. Sometimes, it’s difficult to think of one voice as being strong, loud and resonant above all else – but then you’re stuck in a room with a mosquito and it all clicks. The squeaky wheel gets the grease, and the signed petition gets heard: thankfully, the White House petition exceeded the number of signatures necessary against the Dakota Access Pipeline, but there’s a second petition here through Credo Action that could also use some love.

For all the wonder and splendor that the United States has to offer, I never once thought I’d put North Dakota on my travel bucket list – but until now, I’ve never been so crystal clear on what could actually affect change in our world.

Facebook Activism

Though I’m typically not a proponent of Facebook activism per say, in this case – it can do wonders to disrupt, dismantle and discombobulate the network of decision making by authorities. Though the tactic is currently under investigation by Snopes as to its actual validity, checking in at Standing Rock on Facebook is a wonderful gesture to demonstrate your solidarity, not to mention a rallying cry to get others in the know.

The earth is much more than nature – it’s nurture, and it’s time for us to protect and love the earth the same way she has loved us. Stand up for Mother Nature – stand up for Standing Rock.

A blossoming duo in the West Coast bass scene, B.R.E.E.D. has won over hearts and dancefloors worldwide – from Do LaB‘s infamous stage at Coachella to VHI1‘s Supersonic Festival in India. The musical brainchild of producer and composer Ritesh D’Souza alongside vocalist, composer and pianist Tara Mae, B.R.E.E.D. continually expounds on their intelligent and experimentally designed soundscapes to produce uniquely wonderful jams.

Ushered in on ethereal vocals,their latest single “OH” quickly evolves into a two headed monster of a track – pairing euphoric, booty shaking bass with seductive syncopation over a world rhythm.

Released through the Arkadia Project, “OH” is available for free download here.

“We made “OH” while we were on tour this summer through Europe, Asia and the U.S. This was probably our best tour yet and we were blessed to play in front of new and amazing crowds in Europe, alongside artists like Odesza, Troy Boi and Gramatik. These crowds were virgins to our music — and the response was unreal! We also performed in and traveled with our masks throughout this tour from India to California, to Europe and back to India again, and it was amazing to see the crowd reaction to our masks at each show we played across the globe on this tour.” – Tara Mae

To piggyback off of the release of their latest single, B.R.E.E.D. has prepared visual exploration through their recent travels around the world with the video for “OH”. Delve into their recent escapades – from Madrid’s Mula Festival, Coachella, Lightning in a Bottle, a live set with Yellow Claw in India, and Los Angeles’s very own Low End Theory.

As the year has been winding down, B.R.E.E.D. has been back in the lab heating things up for 2017. Between touring, building their live set and getting back into the studio – B.R.E.E.D. is collaborating with producer P A T H, while simultaneously putting finishing touches on their “Skinny Thread EP” releasing this Winter and developing their second studio album, set to drop in the Spring – just in time for Festival Season.

Keep up with B.R.E.E.D’s adventures and latest singles via social media:

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Lies. Big or small, white or monstrous – we’ve all told them, and to believe the contrary would be – you guessed it – a lie. According to a recent study, we lie in 25% of our interactions. Both in action and as concrete ideas, lies can build an unstable foundation in any relationship, familial, romantic, platonic – and even your relationship with yourself. And these untruths aren’t confined to our external environment, either; for every falsehood we voice out loud, there are a handful of others that we tell to ourselves. Unfortunately, the lies we tell ourselves pave the way for the way we lie to the world.

In contrast to Mark Twain, who saw them as ‘Lies, damn lies and statistics’; I choose to think of them as white lies, grey lies and black lies, all sitting on a sliding scale of deception. Let’s do a thought experiment for a second. Quick as a bunny, what’s the last lie you told? Did you tell your boss you needed more time on a project, when you’ve actually just been procrastinating? Did you misrepresent yourself in the way you dress, catering to a specific subset of society? Did you tell your squad that you’d meet them for drinks tonight when all you plan on doing is curling up on the couch? Did you tell an artistic friend that you enjoyed their last piece of work when you were anything but interested? Did you tell yourself you didn’t want seconds when you’re still hungry? From half truths to complete falsehoods, none of them are honest – but, one could argue, they’re socially necessary.

From an early age when we couldn’t yet grasp the veracity of the truth when contrasted with the stark emptiness of a false promise, or erroneous nature of a flat out lie – we babbled, we balked, then we talked and walked. We expressed ourselves emotionally, in our own truth, while slowly learning the truths around us. Leaves don’t dance down from trees, they fall with the assistance of gravity; I’d rather believe the former, but the later screams accuracy. And that’s the thing, lies always start small – innocent, lacking any semblance of personal harm or distrust.

White lies are the lies we use on a daily basis to navigate the world. Telling the cashier that your day is going well even if it’s anything but, entertaining a lunchtime meeting with your boss when you just wanted to have your head in a book, compromising on restaurant choice because your friend’s appetite is heavily invested and you could give a shit. Yes, you could be honest in all occasions: My day is actually shit, how long do you have to talk; Sorry, I would rather be alone than talk to you; No, I’m not interesting in eating there. Yet, you don’t – because it’s simpler, easier, almost more necessary to give in to the dance of life. However, each of those scenarios becomes exponentially trickier the more you you’ve seen the cashier, the longer you’ve known your boss or just how well you know your friend.

They say that improvisational comedy won’t work if you continually say ‘No’ to scenarios, and life isn’t much different. Though white lies are most certainly lies, how awkward or tense would you have made each of those situations for both parties by delving into the veracity of the situation? In an economic sense, you understand what you’re giving and you’re complicit in what you’re getting. What transforms the white lies into the grey ones, and the damned black dishonesty, are the people you’re deceiving and the levels of duplicity you’re willing to go through. The closer you consider the relationship, the more harm dishonesty inflicts. Conversely, the more effort you put into the lie, the more disastrous the backdraft.

Beyond being kinder and flat out honest (things I like), the truth is also easier to remember and never has to be defended – because, simply put, the truth just is. It exists whether or not we want to acknowledge it. It’s like evolution, climate change and science – it’s there, and life becomes more valuable when you accept the truth and move forward with it in your pocket.

The economy of friendship is built from the supply and demand backbones of truth. Though we would love to believe that we are infallible and incapable of telling lies, the fact of the matter is we all bend fact to make fable from time to time. Which begs the question not of why do others lie, but why do we lie? Comfort, ease, and emotional protection top the list – the comfort, ease and protection of our own ego.

Sometimes, the truth is boring and as orators and storytellers by nature, we yearn for the truth to be more exciting. But more often than not, the truth is a a difficult pill to swallow – let alone force feed to another soul; it becomes an alarming reason for pause, a conversation starter, relationship ender, or an anxiety induced call to internal calamity. All the while lies, time and time again, are used to smooth over any future scars before the threat of pain is on the horizon. The problem is this – lies are akin to using a bandaid to stop a gunshot wound; it might cover the wound and provide a momentary solution, but it’s not going to stop the bleeding or the pain. While, on the other hand, intimate trust is more like a mirror – once it’s broken, it can never be put back together quite the same again; and lies have the innate ability to dismantle relationships altogether. This brings about a new problem – and I’ll leave it to Nietzsche to summarize: “I’m not upset that you lied to me, I’m upset that I can never believe you again.”

None of us wants to believe the people in their lives to be liars, or dishonest in any way. Yet knock out one of the mosaics in the stained glass window of your relationship with a lie and you’re bound to shine light on an emotional situation. Knock too many down, and the vibrant image has been replaced with a new vision of clarity. How many lies does one need to tell to be removed from our inner circle and emotionally placed outside of the intimate confines of our reality?

How many lies do we need to tell ourselves before we realize that we don’t have to be what the world wants us to be? We can be unapologetically ourselves, with all of our faults and idiosyncrasies, where our true preferences are wrapped up in the fibers of your ego and expunged through every fiber of your being. Once you’ve lived honestly with yourself, there’s no going back – being honest with the world you cultivate and curate feels like living with love in every step; once attained, it feels like the only way to live.

No matter the circumstances, next time you’re about to fib, falter, misspeak, or flat out lie – wonder what you’re lying to yourself about first, and ask yourself why.

“I watched this movie called “Liar Liar” and the message was, *Don’t* lie; and that was a smart movie.“

When our body suffers, 99.9% of the time we’re willing to divulge the details to friends and family, overshare the news on social media or with our support group. A broken foot, a sprained knee, a fractured wrist – all injuries that we wouldn’t lament over or hide, bury in the back of our mind and remain silent about. There are, however, two areas that we hesitate on – our mental health and our reproductive health. The former I could go on and on about, but that’s for another time – this right here is about the later.

As we push forward into the 21st Century, you’d think we’d have absolved ourselves from living with a very catholic guilt about our reproductive systems by now – but no, not in the least. Less the fact we all came from one, or that half the population is the proud owner of one, and another large proportion of the world simply enjoys them: reproductive health for both genders is taboo to discuss even though we all ubiquitously contain a set, and in some rare cases both sets, of organs. Just one mention of reproductive health brings to mind STIs and STDs, unprotected sex, condoms and awkward videos from High School health class. Those ideas are a roadblock, what’s preventing us from getting beyond it and discussing a wide variety of other common issues that we might not even be aware of.

After being diagnosed with a Bartholin’s Cyst last year, I’ve stayed deep on the hunt for any and all relevant information. Scouring forums and digesting mountains of medical research, it dawned on me that if women were as open with each other about personal problems down under as they were with their wardrobe or the latest celebrity gossip, we’d have gotten a lot further in the vertical of female reproductive health.

When I first got my cyst, I joked that my vag was ‘broken’, but I could only make that joke to near and dear people that I could count on both hands. Though it made me giggle from time to time to say, inside I had to swallow a hard truth that it’s a lot easier to talk about literally any other organ besides my vagina. Even now, I’m anxiously laughing while typing this and in the back of my head, I know I’ve never used the word so much as I’m doing now. But maybe that’s part of the my point: to desensitize, to engage, to see past what society has told us we need to see and face the real issues.

I promise, I’m not bringing this up because I really want to talk about my vag – quite the contrary, I don’t; I’m awkward about talking about my privates like a 13 year old figuring out their first kiss. But the first step to being real with myself about it is talking about it, or in this case – writing about it. Writing is my catharsis, my therapy, and the way I get through things – but what good is getting through something for yourself, if you can help others get through it too.

The one thing I’ve realized the more I talk with my doctors, family and mentors is this: you’d think women’s reproductive issues like cysts, and endometriosis would be rare based on the lack of current conversation, but in fact – they’re not uncommon whatsoever, in fact – cysts occur in one out of every 50 women, abscesses are three times more likely to occur than cysts and 1 in 10 suffers from endometriosis. Meaning the chances of you knowing someone who has had, or will have one is incredibly likely – and now that you know me, here I am – your trusty data point, ready and waiting for instruction.

What’s interesting to know, is that the vagina is the only organ in our body that naturally produces cysts: after our eggs leave the ovary, they travel to the uterus to create a Blastocyst, which them forms into the embryo. Sometimes, they’re on the larger side – sometimes, they sit on top of the ovary – and sometimes, they dissolve back into the body, unnoticed. That’s fortunately what happened to me.

In a followup appointment a month ago, my OB/GYN discovered a second cyst. This time, 6 centimeters in diameter and sitting on my right ovary. If I said I didn’t flip the fuck out, I would be lying. Which is why I’ve been trying to pen this for almost a month. Between my pride and my anxiety, the flutterings of an ego attempting to hold on to the last notion that it’ll all be okay and a mental state that screams I’m anything but, I’ve managed. I wanted to sweep this all under a rug, never talk about it and live in a state of semisweet ignorant bliss – but that was all null and void because what I want most of anything is for my karass out there to be aware of what can go on down there.

So, here’s what you can do. First and foremost, make sure that you’re up to date with all of your doctors appointments. And I mean, all of them; blood-work from your general practitioner could come in handy when you least expect it. Secondly, always go in to your doctor with a checklist of questions and or concerns, and if you don’t want to write down the answers – ask if you can audio record the session to take notes later on. If you get labs, check beforehand that the right medical codes are on them – and do some price checking so you’re not stuck with a $1000+ bill on what you thought was a routine test. There’s never enough research, but do yourself a favor and get yourself off of WebMD – your doctor is excellent, and if you don’t think so second opinions exist…but from the girl who self diagnosed with spinal meningitis at the age of 10, maybe save the diagnoses for the real doc. Last, but certainly not least – raise your voice to your support system, you never know which shoulders you can lean on.

If you’re ever stuck with the question of how to make a fantastic track even better, the answer as of late has been to hand it over to Lane 8 and let him work his musical magic. Already an ethereal and emotive track, Lane 8 pulls at our heartstrings with his moving redux of a tried and true favorite. Slow, synth fueled vocal echos build into a euphoric, driving melody befit for all dance floors.

Part of the ‘Innerbloom’ remix package forthcoming from RÜFÜS DU SOL, this little tease has us wanting and needing more. In that respect, North American fans are in luck – they’ve embarked on their Fall 2016 tour and are heading towards a city near you.

Arguably, one of the best things about Autumn and Winter in Southern California are that they feel like anything but. Beyond an occasional fresh breath of brisk air around dusk, the sunshine is radiant, flowers are blooming around every corner and the parks around the city are bustling with an effervescent energy. What I’ve discovered recently, is that no matter what part of Los Angeles you’re in – you’re never more than 10 minutes from a lovely and lush patch of park, if that. And I would know – recently, I’ve started up (yet another) part time gig and it’s required me to be slightly more mobile than working from my home office, and I’ve found myself getting reacquainted with neighborhoods from Silver Lake to Echo Park, Los Feliz and Highland Park; mostly to do with the fact I’ve gotten lost more times than I’d like to admit. One of the highlights to these recent roadtrips is roaming open space and breathing in the little treasures our city has to offer.

The great outdoors – something that more often than not is taken for granted. Did you know that for basically the entire time you’re working Monday through Friday, the sun is gallivanting through the sky, on a predictable yet beautiful path while it doles out showers of sunlight at every angle – even gracing us with technicolor beginnings and endings when we’re lucky enough to be in the right location? Yet, for the most part – we’re inside, staring at a computer monitor, behind a desk, wearing a monkey suit and tap-tap-tapping away at our tasks until the sweet sensation of five o’clock rolls around. Let’s be honest, that’s no way to live – so during lunchtime, do yourself a favor: get out, get moving, lap up some sun and reenergize your day the natural way.

Plants use sunlight do undergo photosynthesis, creating the oxygen that we breathe. As humans, we don’t necessarily go through the same exact process – but sunlight clearly has it’s own set of health benefits. Just a few minutes of sunlight has proven to improve mood by boosting levels of serotonin (have you ever visited Oregon in the Winter…?), and stimulating the body to produce Vitamin D, boosting health and the immune system. Plus, getting some exercise in the middle of your day is always a good call – a brisk walk might not be a run, but it’s not sitting on your ass at home, either.

Slowly but surely, I’ve been compiling a list of my favorite public spaces to plop into – and after several visits in the last few months, Echo Park Lake is slowly topping my list. First and foremost, there’s that spectacular view of the downtown skyline – it looks fantastic, especially with some clouds dotting the sky. Then, there are loads of space on the luscious green grass skirting around the lake, while geese and duck gleefully flock around the park. If you’re feeling adventurous, or a tad romantic – rent out a paddleboat for a spin on the lake! Two points for you if you happened to paddle out to the floating library installation earlier this year, you’re the real MVP. Though there’s no designated parking for Echo Park Lake, the outer rim of the lake offers a plethora of street parking – as do the surrounding neighborhoods. The park has also accepted that we’re living in the 21st century and has it’s own WiFi for anyone trying to get some work done, or maybe just stream their music a little bit easier.

For more on Echo Park Lake, head to their social media channels – or just pay the park a leisurely visit.

Ahhh, 2016 – another year, another Daft Punk rumor; yet, for once, the rumors of touring, studio work and new projects might have some sound footing. Coming hot of the release of The Weekend’s new track ‘Star Boy’, it’s very evident that the French duo has been back in the studio and laying down a little something something. Regardless of your personal raves and / or rants about the quality of the track, it begs the question: how long have they really been in the studio?? And now, there’s the website; if you’re a tried and true DP fanatic, you know exactly what I’m talking about.

But first, a little history. Deep in Birmingham’s Que Club, back in 1997, Daft Punk recorded the audio for their Alive 1997 – later released in 2001. Then, a decade later in 2007 – Daft Punk released a long anticipated follow-up album, aptly titled Alive 2007 (surprise). Both of these albums were accompanied by tours. With 2017, and their twenty year alive-aversary just a few short months away – could they be teasing a third live album, and mayyyybe even a tour?? A techno kitten can dream, can’t she? So when I saw the website for Alive2017.com – I might have freaked out, just a bit.

The website itself is a bit bland at first glance; however there is a little, itty bitty number sequence hiding right behind the I. Plus if I’ve learned anything about the way the world works: you should never judge a book by its cover, but you can definitely judge a website by its code. So, I dipped in – below, I break it down.

The first set of numbers looks like code, and the last four lines really look like location coordinates (I might watch a lot of CSI…).With a little plugging and chugging of each line of data, and slight manipulation like inserting a . between numerical segments, the first line 48 51 24 2 21 03 becomes 48°51’24.0″N 2°21’03.0″E, which is the longitude and latitude of Paris – France’s château de Techno. Plugging in the rest, you get:

That last location might be the most important: ARE THE COACHELLA RUMORS FINALLY GOING TO BE TRUE?!

Then, we get to the end of the code – the first thing I noticed was the ‘Wake Date 2016-10-27’; put a reminder, make a note, draw with permanent pen or get a damn tattoo – this date is important.

Last, but not least – ‘Shep Logged Out’: Shep was a character in the esteemed anime movie Interstellar 5555. And, as if we needed another nod, deep in the source index there’s an interval of 5555. Is it fate? Is it phony? Either way, I’m going to put on Homework back to back with Discovery and pray to the music gods that I’m not just addicted to Mr. Robot and this is all real.